AGEING BODY AND SOCIETY: CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES FUTURE CHALLENGES

摘要

Over the last two decades significant theoretical, methodological and empirical developments have explored the social, biological and cultural dimensions of our bodies as we grow older. An earlier concern within social gerontology that a focus on the bodies of older people represented a return to biological determinism and an overly medical approach has been replaced by a realisation how a focus on ageing bodies offers a novel lens to examine a range of existing sociological and theoretical concerns. These include the nature of the body, self and ageing; social identities and social inequalities; lived experiences and everyday life; health and illness; and ageing across the lifecourse from midlife to deep old age. The analysis of ageing bodies has also operated as a focal point for interdisciplinary work that draws together research across the arts, humanities and social sciences.It is over twenty years since the absent body in gerontology was highlighted. It is therefore timely to bring together academics and researchers to review the wealth of work in this area and to explore and develop key debates, enhance current and emergent theoretical perspectives, disseminate empirical research and outline future directions for research in ‘Ageing, Body and Society’. The papers presented within this symposium contribute to a special issue Ageing Body and Society: Critical Perspectives, Future Challenges to be published in the Journal of Aging Studies edited by Dr Wendy Martin and Professor Julia Twigg who are also Co-Convenors of an international study group Ageing, Body and Society which is within the British Sociological Association (BSA).